Radio Okapi is a radio network that operates in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. On an annual budget of USD$4.5 million, a staff of 200 provide news and information to the entire urban population of the DRC. Radio Okapi provides programming in French and in the four national languages of Congo: Lingala, Kituba, Swahili and Tshiluba,
Radio Okapi was created by the United Nations Mission in the Democratic Republic of Congo (MONUC) and the Swiss NGO Fondation Hirondelle. The agreement between MONUC and the Congolese government foresaw the creation of a radio network to inform the Congolese population of the MONUC's efforts. MONUC and the Fondation Hirondelle submitted a plan in 2001 to the United Nations, and the radio network went live on 25 February 2002. [1] The station takes its name from the endangered Okapi, the elusive mammal native to the rainforest of northern Congo.
In 2011 The Economist said that Radio Okapi was "one of Africa’s most admirably independent radio services". [2]
Mary Myers, in the essay "Well-Informed Journalists Make Well-Informed Citizens: Coverage of Governance Issues in the Democratic Republic of Congo," said that the radio station "raised the bar for other indigenous radio and TV stations in the country." [3] Other area radio stations copied Radio Okapi's news gathering techniques, program concepts, and formats. Myers also said "Although Radio Okapi can be a thorn in the government's side at times, its stance of promoting peace and democracy and the strong role it plays in civic education have led to its recognition, even by the Minister of Information, as a national asset that the Democratic Republic of Congo could ill afford to lose." [3]
Serge Maheshe a journalist for Radio Okapi was shot on 13 June 2007. Maheshe was the editor in chief in Bukavu for the station. [4]
Radio Okapi provides programming in French and in Lingala, Kituba, Swahili and Tshiluba, transmitting all day every day on: [5]
Telecommunications in the Democratic Republic of the Congo include radio, television, fixed and mobile telephones, and the Internet.
Luba-Kasai, also known as Cilubà or Tshilubà, Luba-Lulua, is a Bantu language of Central Africa and a national language of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, alongside Lingala, Swahili, and Kikongo ya leta.
Bandundu is one of eleven former provinces of the Democratic Republic of the Congo. It bordered the provinces of Kinshasa and Bas-Congo to the west, Équateur to the north, and Kasai-Occidental to the east. The provincial capital is also called Bandundu.
The Democratic Republic of the Congo is a multilingual country where an estimated total of 242 languages are spoken. Ethnologue lists 215 living languages. The official language, since the colonial period, is French, one of the languages of Belgium. Four other languages, three of them Bantu based, have the status of national language: Kikongo-Kituba, Lingala, Swahili and Tshiluba.
Articles related to the Democratic Republic of the Congo include:
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Vital Kamerhe Lwa Kanyiginyi Nkingi is a Congolese politician, currently serving as Deputy Prime Minister of Economy and the leader of the Union for the Congolese Nation (UNC) party. He served as the President of the National Assembly of the Democratic Republic of the Congo from 2006 to 2009. After resigning from that office, he went into the opposition and founded the UNC. He ran in the 2011 presidential election. He supported Félix Tshisekedi as a coalition partner in the 2018 presidential election, and became chief of staff when Tshisekedi took office.
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Mass media in the Democratic Republic of the Congo are both nationally and internationally state owned and operated.
The official language of the Republic of Congo is French. Other languages are mainly Bantu languages, and the two national languages in the country are Kituba and Lingala, followed by Kongo languages, Téké languages, and more than forty other languages, including languages spoken by Pygmies, which are not Bantu languages.
Protection International (PI) is an international non-profit organisation dedicated to the protection of human rights defenders (HRDs). Its stated mission is to offer long-term accompaniment and support human rights defenders at risk by building capacities for managing their protection and security effectively. Protection International takes a preventive and collective perspective of protection instead of the most often reactive perspectives.
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Ghislaine Dupont was a French journalist who specialised in African issues.
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Justin Bitakwira Bihona-Hayi is a Congolese politician and a member of the National Assembly. He is the founder of the Alliance pour la République et la Conscience Nationale political party (ARCN) and a member of the Union for the Congolese Nation. He has been affiliated with several political parties, including the Union for Democracy and Social Progress (UDPS) and the People's Party for Reconstruction and Democracy (PPRD). He held various government positions, including Minister of Rural Development, Minister of Communication and Media and Minister of Relations with Parliament. As a minister, his political principles were described as nationalist, populist, opportunist, reformist, tribalist, and protectionist.
Caddy Adzuba is a Congolese lawyer, journalist, and activist for women's rights. Her focus is on fighting sexual violence in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). She worked for Radio Okapi and in 2014 she received the Princess Asturias Award for Peace.
The following is a timeline of the history of the city of Bukavu, Democratic Republic of the Congo.
Media related to Radio Okapi at Wikimedia Commons
